Chicago Blackhawks go up 2-0 with 3-2 victory

Caption5:00 a.m. (CDT) -- Arriving at O'Hare

Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune

At 5 a.m., I arrived at O'Hare Airport's Terminal 3 to start my daylong playoff odyssey that will take me from Chicago to Boston and then back to Chicago covering along the way a pair of Chicago playoff games. The first will be at 11:30 am, when the Chicago Bulls' opening game of the first...

At 5 a.m., I arrived at O'Hare Airport's Terminal 3 to start my daylong playoff odyssey that will take me from Chicago to Boston and then back to Chicago covering along the way a pair of Chicago playoff games. The first will be at 11:30 am, when the Chicago Bulls' opening game of the first... (Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune)

After arriving at O'Hare, I checked in and secured the final seat on my flight to Boston. 24E was my seat - a middle seat. Ugh! I was hoping to shoot out the window as we took off. Oh, well! Maybe I can lean over my row mate.

After arriving at O'Hare, I checked in and secured the final seat on my flight to Boston. 24E was my seat - a middle seat. Ugh! I was hoping to shoot out the window as we took off. Oh, well! Maybe I can lean over my row mate. (Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune)

I arrived at my gate for my 6:20 a.m. flight to Beantown. After I explained my day-long odyssey, the women behind the gate desk allowed me behind their counter to photograph the screen behind them. After I was finished, I asked if could switch my middle seat to a window seat. Voila! Seat 19F...

I arrived at my gate for my 6:20 a.m. flight to Beantown. After I explained my day-long odyssey, the women behind the gate desk allowed me behind their counter to photograph the screen behind them. After I was finished, I asked if could switch my middle seat to a window seat. Voila! Seat 19F... (Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune)

The victory before a crowd of 22,514 at the United Center gave the Hawks a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series that now shifts to Calgary for Games 3 Monday night.

In the 2002 playoffs, the Hawks took Game 1 against the St. Louis Blues before collapsing in the next four. The Hawks have a 24-10 all-time postseason series record when winning Game 1 and a 16-2 mark when opening a 2-0 series lead.

"It was a good thing to get out of that first period and it was kind of a fresh start for us," Toews said of the dominating second period that the Hawks captain opened with a power-play goal at the 46-second mark.

"It was good to get that goal early and at that point it felt like a completely different game. All the guys on the bench were refreshed and the game was tighter. It was a great second period and even better in the third that we could hold them off for such a long period of time."

For those who thought Game 1 featured ferocious hitting, it didn't compare to the check-fest Saturday night. The Flames out-hit the Hawks 21-12 in a frenetic first period that saw Calgary dominate most of the scoring chances. There was nary a whistle that didn't draw pushing and shoving as both teams tried to establish a physical presence. The Hawks out-hit the Flames 13-5 in the second and Calgary finished with 37 to the Hawks' 35.

"It was a pretty fast start out there with a lot of bodies flying around," said Sharp, who tied it at 13:58 of the second. "We can't be spotting a team like the Flames two goals."

After the Flames took an early lead on Jarome Iginla's power-play goal and extended it to 2-0 on former Hawk Adrian Aucoin's score late in the first, the Hawks exploded.

First, Toews took a perfect cross-ice pass from Sharp and fired a forehand past goalie Miikka Kiprusoff at :46. Patrick Kane then set up Sharp for the tying goal at 13:58. He scooped up a loose puck along the boards and hit Sharp with a backhand pass that Sharp corralled, shifted from his backhand to forehand and fired past Kiprusoff.

With :24 remaining in the period, Toews knocked a rebound of a Dave Bolland shot from the top of the right circle past Kiprusoff to give the Hawks the winning margin.

"We're happy about the position we're in but we don't want to get comfortable for one second," Toews said. "This game was a lot tougher than the last one. We know the pace is only going to pick up and only get tougher. Especially in their building."

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